Post-injury return to work: The US situation

Conferencia
Idioma: 
English
Traducción simultánea
John
Ruser
Associate Commissioner for Productivity and Technology
US Bureau of Labor Statistics
Estados Unidos

John W. Ruser is Associate Commissioner for Productivity and Technology at the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).  Until recently, Dr. Ruser served as BLS Assistant Commissioner for Safety, Health and Working Conditions, overseeing the US Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries and the US Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses.  These programs serve as the nation's public health surveillance systems for work-related fatal injuries and non-fatal injuries and illnesses.  Dr. Ruser has written many peer-reviewed and non-technical articles and book chapters on occupational safety and health and workers’ compensation insurance. Dr. Ruser holds Ph.D. and M.A. degrees in economics from the University of Chicago and a B.A. in economics from Princeton University.

While reduction in workplace injuries is the foremost goal of occupational risk prevention, there are measures that employers and insurers can take to mitigate the impact of a workplace injury once it occurs.  In the US, disability management and early return to work have become key aspects of a post-injury mitigation strategy.

The past quarter century has witnessed a dramatic change in the US in the management of workers’ compensation claims and post-injury time off work.  A quarter century ago, an injured worker was likely to be absent from work for some period of time to recuperate from an injury.  Now, employers are much more likely to bring injured workers back to work early, placing them on restricted work duties or “light duty” (tarea liviana) until they have recovered from their injuries.  This “return to work” approach has received substantial attention among companies as a way to reduce workers’ compensation costs.

My presentation will first present evidence from a large US government survey to substantiate this strong growth in the use of return to work in private industry.  Data will show the extent to which the growth in this practice varies by employer and injury characteristics.  In addition, I will present some data from a new US survey to show the types of injuries and workers that are associated with greater use of return to work and to show the extent to which return to work and days away from work are used together.

Early return to work has both benefits and costs to the employer and the worker.  I will discuss some of the research which attempts to identify and quantify these benefits and costs.  Benefits include reduced workers’ compensation costs, improved attachment of workers to the employer, and the preservation of employer-specific knowledge and training.  Costs include incomplete healing and subsequent time off work.

Fechas: 
Viernes, 23 Mayo 2014 - 11:00am
Sede/Lugar: 
Sala C